Grint, Keith, and Case, Peter (2000) 'Now where were we?' BPR lotus-eaters and corporate amnesia. In: Knights, David, and Willmott, Hugh, (eds.) The Reengineering Revolution: critical studies of corporate change. Sage Publications, London, GBR, pp. 26-49.

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Abstract

For nine days I was chased by those accursed winds across the fish-infested seas. But on the tenth we made the country of the Lotus-eaters, a race that lived on vegetable foods. We disembarked to draw water, and my crews quickly set to on their midday meal by the ships. But as soon as we had a mouthful and a drink, I sent some of my followers inland to find out what sort of human beings might be there, detailing two men with the duty with a third as the messenger. Off they went, and it was not long before they were in touch with the Lotus-eaters. Now it never entered the heads of these natives to kill my friends; what they did was to give them some lotus to taste, and as soon as each had eaten the honeyed fruit of the plant, all thoughts of reporting to us or escaping were banished from his mind. All they wished for now was to stay where they were with the Lotus-eaters, to browse on the lotus, and to forget that they had a home to return to. I had to use force to bring them back to the ships, and they wept on the way, but once on board I dragged them under the benches and left them in irons. (Odysseus in Homer's The Odyssey, Book IX, 'The Cyclops')

Item ID:	26869
Item Type:	Book Chapter (Research - B1)
ISBN:	978-0-7619-6291-5
Keywords:	business process reengineering; organisational memory; lotus-eaters
Date Deposited:	16 Jul 2013 04:01
FoR Codes:	15 COMMERCE, MANAGEMENT, TOURISM AND SERVICES > 1503 Business and Management > 150311 Organisational Behaviour @ 100%
SEO Codes:	95 CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING > 9504 Religion and Ethics > 950402 Business Ethics @ 100%
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